Brazen Career Lessons from Breaking Bad

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Say what you will of Breaking Bad’s protagonist Walter
White — and there’s plenty to say. He’s a ruthless, sociopathic
meth lord whose quest for power has wrought death and destruction
we’ve yet to see the end of.

But he’s also one hell of a businessman.

Note: If you aren’t currently caught up with your
Breaking Bad episodes, you may want to come back to this post
after you are to avoid any potential spoilers. If you are
caught up, and you’re eagerly awaiting the series’ final two
episodes like 5.9 million other fans, let’s indulge our mutual
obsession by exploring yet another way to dissect this endlessly
intriguing show.

While I’m not suggesting a life of crime is the way to go,
there are some things we can learn from the man
known as Heisenberg when it comes to blazing our own trails and
pursuing our goals with unstoppable determination.
(Click here to tweet this idea.)

Here are four of the big (legally and ethically acceptable)
lessons we can learn from Mr. White — and one warning we’d be
wise to heed.

1. It all starts with quality

There wouldn’t have been a show if Jesse and Walt’s early days in
the RV had resulted in only mediocre product.

Would they have made some money? Sure. Would international drug
cartels and super meth lords like Gus Fring be desperate to get
their hands on that product (and its creator)? Nope.

Walt would have just been some middle-aged chemistry teacher
cooking drugs in his skivvies in the middle of the desert. His
rise to mythological levels of power and notoriety started off
with the one thing all wannabe entrepreneurs have to
have: a solid, high-quality product. Walt’s meth was the
purest in the marketplace, and his customers (and competition)
recognized that — and that’s what gave him the leverage to build
an empire from nothing.

Would-be business mavens, take note: unless your product or
service is top-notch, all the advertising strategies and killer
branding in the world won’t take you very far. It all begins with
offering something consumers or clients can’t get enough of.

2. Brand matters

“The blue stuff” is Heisenberg’s trademark. It’s how you know
instantly that you’re getting the best. When Walt leaves the biz
behind, new meth lord Lydia insists that substitute cook Todd
figure out how to replicate the trademark color, because that’s
what people on the street are asking for. She isn’t nearly as
concerned with the purity level of the new batch as she is with
making sure their product retains brand consistency. It’s so
critical it’s saved Jesse’s life (for now).

After you’ve got that top-notch service or product, you
need to find a way to differentiate yourself in the
marketplace — whether it’s a look, a feel or a certain
brand personality. When you see an Apple product, you know it’s
an Apple product. From the sleek design to the packaging, you can
tell it apart from every other gadget vying for similar market
share.

So, what’s your “calling card” going to be? What will let
consumers know you’re different, and how will they be able to
spot your “stuff” from the competition’s?

3. You are who you say you are

Walt first dubs himself “Heisenberg” in the episode where he
shaves his head, confronts local drug lord Tuco and makes it
clear (via surprise explosive device) that he isn’t to be messed
with. It’s one of the first times we see Walt fully embrace his
darker ambitions — he’s not just doing this for his family; part
of him loves the power and fame, and he’s officially declaring
his pursuit of that. As the debris settles, we as an audience
know that he’s rounded a corner, and the streets of Albuquerque
know there’s a new kingpin in town.

Whether you’re a meek chemistry teacher, an entry-level clerk or
a college dropout turned startup owner, you create your
own destiny by acknowledging your goals and going after them
full-throttle. It doesn’t matter if the world doesn’t
take you seriously at first; they will once you show them what
you’re made of. Believe in the potential within yourself,
act like you’ve already made
it, and the world will start to respect.

4. There’s always a way out

Cops impound your car containing a laptop full of incriminating
evidence? Get a gigantic magnet, b****, and erase that evidence
in a way no one will believe actually happened. Kidnapped in the
desert for days and not sure how to explain your absence to your
family? Strip naked in a convenience store and pretend you’ve
been in a cancer-induced fugue state the whole time.

The lengths to which Walt will go — and his utter refusal to
believe he’s ever painted into a corner — are pretty damn
impressive, and one of the reasons fans admire his ingenuity,
even as they denounce his actions. He will not be stopped. He
will not be beaten. While each cliffhanger episode leaves you
full of dread and anticipation, you always secretly know that
somehow, Walt will find a way out of it.

No matter what challenges, setbacks, or failures you face
in your professional career, you have two possible
solutions: lose hope and give up, or put on your
thinking cap and figure out a way to tunnel yourself free, in
whatever way possible. Nothing is ever truly hopeless if you’re
determined enough. Never underestimate the power of creativity
and resolve.

5. Know what you’re doing it all for

And now, for the warning.

Walt got involved in the whole meth scene out of a desire to
provide for his family after his cancer diagnosis. As the series
progressed, we’ve watched him devolve into a creature driven by
greed, ego and a thirst for power. But he still seemed to have
soft spots — for his kids (definitely), for Jesse (sometimes),
for his wife Skylar (maybe?). It was one of the things that kept
people rooting for him long after he’d clearly gone from hero to
anti-hero.

Now that the show is winding down, the big question in everyone’s
mind has been: Which Walt will be left when the smoke clears?
Does he have any humanity left, or has Heisenberg taken
over completely?

The most recent episode seems to lean towards the latter, but you
never can tell with Walt. His motives have become so muddied he’d
give up his entire fortune to save the brother-in-law who could
turn him in — yet he has no qualms about kidnapping his infant
daughter to “teach his wife a lesson.”

Walt’s two competing drives (and selves) are ultimately what’s
done him in. Trying to walk the impossible line between taking
care of his family and looking out for number one, he now stands
to lose everything he fought for. One self is suffering for the
other self’s choices. Wherever he’s going in that beat-up
minivan, it’s not to celebrate his grand victory.

Don’t let an internal tug of war derail your own happiness. When
it comes to your career, you need to be able to sit down with
yourself and honestly identify why you’re pursuing what
you’re pursuing.

Regardless of what everyone else expects of you,
regardless of what you think you “should” be doing, what’s your
real driving force? If you’re not clear on
that, or you’re chasing something else but pretending you’re
clear on it, even the most “successful” of careers won’t
ultimately make you happy.

It’s your choice. Which way are you going to break?

Kelly Gurnett is Assistant Editor of Brazen Life and runs the
blog Cordelia Calls It Quits, where she
documents her attempts to rid her life of the things that don’t
matter and focus more on the things that do. You can follow her
on Twitter and Facebook and hire her services as a blogger
extraordinaire here.